Parenting time, not custody or visitation

Many people know the system where one parent pays another parent for the costs associated with raising the couple’s children as custody. Many people will also refer to the time with kids as visitation.  But the more accurate terms that courts and family law attorneys prefer to use are decision-making and parenting time. The key distinction is that the term custody implies ownership, and parents don’t own their children.

Decision-making and parenting time are preferred because they recognize that your children are their own people and that neither you nor your spouse is the owner of them.  Decision-making addresses how the major decisions in your children’s lives will be made.  Parenting time is a determination of when the children will be with each parent.

When you are discussing your kids with your attorney, use the terms parenting time and decision-making. A parenting plan will outline where the children will live, what time each parent will spend with the children, who will make parenting decisions and how, the child’s holiday and vacation schedules and how vacation time will be split.

Financial disclosures

As part of a divorce or legal separation, the court will likely require both parties to file a series of financial disclosures. These disclosures will be used to help divide any marital property as well as award any maintenance or child support that may be required.

Colorado follows an ‘equitable division’ in dividing marital property meaning that the court is seeking to divide the property fairly, which doesn’t always mean equally. Regardless, it’s important for you to be aware that if you don’t disclose some of your assets, you can be subject to sanctions or fees from the court.

There are mandatory disclosures that you must file in some cases, regardless of whether you are employed, self-employed or unemployed.

Those can include a completed financial statement, income tax returns, personal financial statements, business financial statements, real estate documents, a list of personal debts and investments, retirement plans, banking documents and any other income documents you may have. A complete list can be seen here.

If you are self-employed, there are additional considerations to keep in mind for this reporting. While the Internal Revenue Service allows a range of things to be written off as business expenses, everything that you include as a tax write off are included as part of the calculation for maintenance and child support.